Advocacy for United States

What’s Happening?

The United States established its contemporary refugee resettlement and asylum system in 1980 and, in the decades that followed, developed further protection pathways for migrants, particularly for children, victims of crimes, and people from countries in grave crisis. Since the mid-2010s, the United States has resettled fewer refugees from abroad and limited access to asylum at the southern border. The Biden administration has continued this trend while increasing access to temporary protection and parole pathways.

What Must Be Done?

Refugees International is calling on the United States to end its enforcement approach to asylum at the border, strengthen its refugee resettlement program, and expand pathways to protection to additional forcibly displaced people. After arrival, asylum seekers should be given prompt ability to work and needed services and support.

Issue Brief

118th Congress: Humanitarian Engagement for Displaced Populations

Report

Mixed Blessing: Guatemalan Experiences under the New Central American Minors Program

Report

Supplementary Protection Pathways to the United States: Lessons from the Past for Today’s Humanitarian Parole Policies

Statement

Refugees International Welcomes TPS for Venezuelans, Biden Admin Measures that ‘Affirm American Commitment to Humanitarian Protection’

Statement

Statement for the Record | “Unlocking America’s Potential: How Immigration Fuels Economic Growth and Our Competitive Advantage”

Statement

Refugees International Calls for Emergency Supplemental Submission to Congress to Support Humanitarian Needs 

Q&A

Q&A: What Is at Stake as the Biden Administration’s CHNV Parole Program Goes on Trial?

Q&A

“I Tell People: Remember Where You Came From”: An Interview with Fernando “Fernie” Quiroz of the Arizona-California Humanitarian Coalition in Yuma

Q&A

A Legal Win for Access to Asylum in the United States: Q&A with Yael Schacher

Advocacy Letter

World Refugee Day 2023: Prioritize Family Reunification for Refugee Families

Advocacy Letter

The Biden Administration Must Immediately Stop Conducting Credible Fear Interviews in CBP Custody

Advocacy Letter

Recommendations for the Shelter and Services Program: Making Possible Sustainable, Orderly, and Safe Reception at the US-Mexico Border

Event

Immigration Restriction Then and Now: Re-Examining the Impact and Legacy of the 1921 and 1924 Immigration Acts

Event

Experiences of Haitian Migrants in Mexico and at the U.S. Border

Event

Georgetown Immigration Law Journal: #ImmigrationANDHistory

Commentary

Comment for the Federal Register on the Biden Administration’s Proposed Asylum Ban

Perspective

“This Cause is Personal to Every One of Us”: An Exchange with Fresh Start Refugee Assistance Center

Perspective

#WeCanWelcome: Meet Lorenzo Ortiz, a Mexican American Pastor Welcoming Asylum Seekers

Featured Image: A Guatemalan father and daughter who are seeking asylum rest in a shelter on May 15, 2019 in El Paso, Texas. © Mario Tama/Getty Images